To see performance figures on the HTC pro 2 as soon as you can get one.
I'll be skipping the Nokia n97 because its keyboard is bashed in many reviews, and because I'm a bit tired of symbian and like WM better...
And I'll obviously skip the iphone 3gs because it has no keyboard whatsoever!! does it have copy&paste functionality built in already, or do you still need to get an add on for that in this one, too? Reply

If you throw out the slashdot.org (statistical outlier) the advantage of the 3gs over the pre is only 11%.

Really this set of data is not a very conclusive test, the pre was actually faster loading 3 of the 9 websites. You really need to compare quite a few more sites to get viably accurate performance % advantage. Reply

I own a g1... and the time I got are way different from your tests
Do the g1 or pre have any programs running in the background?
I understand that the iphone does not handle multitasking... In other words, once you close the yahoo app, it logs you off... which is rather pointless to use im at all imho

Hi Anand,
I am sorry to ask but am bit curious did you use non formated sites for facebook & Slashdot because of too much discrepency of my Iphone 3GS and your numbers of it.
Also I was wondering if you can do a app launching test on Iphone 3GS with a 3rd party app as most of the native apps run services in background (I found this by installing backgrounder app from Cydia after jailbreak on 3G and found that many native apps were running in background already). So its not launching from standstill if its half running.
Thanks.
Ehsan Reply

wow, you're telling me that majority of the " native apps" are already running? that's why it appears to pull up different apps quickly, already running a certain percentage per app (native). I think that is a good question as well. Reply

I' d really like to see how these devices compare to the Samsung Omnia HD (the most advanced Symbian phone to date) and the soon to be released Samsung i7500 (sporting a platform similaro to the HTC Magic) running Android 1.5 OS. Reply

You're going to sit there and tell me that wi-fi is a true test? Because ATT & Sprint cannot connect at the same time? Hmm? Alright, example: Dallas TX, both ATT and Sprint have superb coverage there. You can run iphone 3gs and palm pre data at the same time..why cant you test then? I agree, reset both devices and search from scratch, pull up sites, big sites-cnn.com you know what i mean. I stand corrected about the robust amount of apps..though i do know that pre has an app emulator that allows you to run old programs from prev palm devices and even allows 2way cable synching. Yes I ran 20 apps, the last 4 apps did take awhile to come up, but finally did. As far as I can see, the iphone will not allow multiple major apps to be ran at the same time. So how do you call that a true multi-tasking device. I still believe all the apps are a simple solution for the slow att data network. I repeat again, i stand corrected about the many apps that i posted. i have no problem with being corrected, i appreciate everyone checking me on that! i am not bias on my feedback, i do know that that the pre will not allow you to forward sms text, yet, sw update coming soon to fix that issue. the software update that came 1.0.3 did come quick, yet did fix major issues because of the overwhelming feedback given to palm on the pre's release date. those guys work quick. Question, can you watch tv on the new iphone? Still wont allow you to remove the battery if it fails to boot up? Reply

How many times must you be told? The coverage of the city does not mean the tests will be equal. Users on the tower, the distance from the tower, the throughput of that particular tower, etc. all affect the latency, upload and download speeds for various file sizes. This will change throughout the day and where you move to in relation to the tower and what towers you are on. That is why using the SAME WiFi connection connected to the SAME internet connection the SAME distance from the router is the more fair test for judging the page rendering speed of each device. Reply

Nice comparison overall, but your web browsing benchmark is a little whack- some sites (slashdot for example) return a iphone optimized site based on the user agent - i.e. you're essentially testing loading two different sites.
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The software update for webOS 1.0.3 is less than 36 hours old. But that upgrade fixes a lot: Echange Certificate SSL, Battery Optimization, speed...oh did you know the pre now has approximate 700,000 apps now!! Don't believe me, check out this site: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/20/close-to-700-00...">http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/20/clos...-000-pal... sooooo looks like the pre is going to be just fine. has anyone tested the iphone 3gs vs palm pre using their carriers own data network, not this convoluted wi-fi..also how do we know that the sites have not been viewed before..if the cookies have not been deleted then its going to recall the site faster than if cookies were cleared before the test...so no true details were given, they just hooked up to wi-fi and off you go. Come do you really think you'll be using wi-fi every place you go? No, you'll use ATT's slow data speed. Oh is that why the iphone has sooo many apps? app this, app that, app for everything, why because it would take too long getting there on att data network. why am i talking like this, i have the iphone and pre, lol att unlimited plan is too expensive: $99 unlimited talk + $30 unlimited data + $20 unlimited text total $149.99, Sprint: Unlimited talk, data, text, navigation, live tv, and more for total $99.99, a $50 less plan and gives you more and a sweet pre plus the data power to multi-task, oh on the iphone how many apps can you run at once? I ran 20 apps on the pre before it began to bog down..few that i ran: pandora, facebook, cnn, google, sprint tv, live search, youtube...Linux OS is the truth!!!! Reply

1) A Linux OS may be the truth to you, but your comments on this site are from the truth.

2) As previously stated, but reiterated because I find it impossible that you just simply made a mistake, but there are not 700k apps for the Pre, compared to the iPhone’s 50k. They don’t even a public SDK available. If you are going to lie at least try to be clever about it.

3) The x.x.3 update for the Pre should be an indication that the update is relatively minor. There are no major changes that have been discovered. The OS is not using the HW better and the battery is still where it was before.

4) The reason WiFi is being used is because both devices can connect to the same network at the same time in the same place. Sprint nor AT&T is dominate or faulty in all areas, which is why the Pre lost out to Anand’s testing of the iPhone 3G (not 3GS) and the Pre at the link below.

5) Sprint’s unlimited everything is cheaper than AT&T’s unlimited everything, as Anand states, but that is how things work between a faltering company trying to keep users from leaving and a company that is having activation issues from having too many users activate new phones at once. If Sprint were a dominate carrier with wider coverage and good phones they surely wouldn’t have to make such discounts… which don’t seem to be working anyway. On top that, most people don’t need all that, and the $69 is the same between devices, expect for the SMS, but adults tend not to care about that, especially when they have email.

6) You may have ran 20 apps at once but the bogging started right away as each new app will take an allotment of RAM and CPU cycles as needed. What you may have meant is that you could open up 20 apps before the system told you couldn’t open up any more, but I have doubts that you got that many open at once.

7) The current iPhone now has plenty or RAM free to allow for background apps, and I’m sure Apple will be releasing the option to iPhone 3GS or newer iPhones and Touches in the future, once the logistics and coding are worked out. Running multiple webpages in the background using the Apple-funded WebKit is not exactly the same as running a C-based app with rich frameworks.

8) If you think the Pre is so fast and you apparently have both devices then test the Pre’s app opening with the iPhone’s from a cold start. Restore from factory is you must. If you don’t want to, no bother, as there will others testing them shortly, but if you do it at least you’ll see that Anand and the rest of the internet isn’t lying to you.

On number 2, OP made a mistake. He meant to say 700k times downloaded. He missed a word downloaded which you should have caught the mistake if you clicked on link.
On number 3, battery life is much better after upgrade and if you read Anand "Palm Pre" review you would know that it almost matched Iphone 3G battery life. Even Apple speech about 'native multitasking is waste of battery life' sound too hollow at this point.
On number 4, Update itself is not important given your theory that its not major update (major update is coming in August that include video recording & more features) but timing is important. With so less people on payroll compared to Apple they are doing phenomenal job.
On number 5, Adult do care about messaging. Its faster and easy. Not everyone is a geek like us who got Imap or exchange. Also price is important when it goes up to be more than $1000 after 2 year contract. And did I mention free roaming with Verizon when Sprint network not available? Also it matters when one provider gives turn by turn navigation along with google map for free while other one announces 3rd party accessory for now and will bomb us with price of tomtom app later. There are other things that matters but I will just leave that alone for now.
On number 6, Even if Pre runs 6 to 8 apps (my normal use), its better than Iphone. In my experience mutliple apps didnt slowdown the OS or UI.
On number 7, I used backgrounder app from Cydia and concur with you that due to C-based apps & rich framework it simply is not easy to do multitasking on Iphone, even on 3GS. Its just the way it is.
On number 8, I respect Anand testing for years and other people who tested both devices but I have my questions about the review and method. Like other poster asked, I want to know if Anand used formatted facebook and slashdot sites for the review? Also Iphone runs few services at boot time which include email, browser etc so comparing app opening on Iphone with on Pre is not fair in my opinion. But I do say even with recent updates Pre needs lot of tuning.
I am keeping my iphone though as Pre is not a device for gaming and is far away from getting good collection of apps that I must have before converting. But I am spoiled just as I was with 1st gen Iphone. Even with its shortcomings at start I am keeping Pre.
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Do you think it would be a fair test using sprint's data network vs att? Given the fact that they both claim best and most coverage nation-wide (foot print) I say choose a major city that show's both att and sprint best coverage: San Fran, Dallas, Miami? I agree major update coming in Aug. Will the iphone 3gs be able to run tv? why do you think apple choose to not give iphone a non-removable battery, is it a money game that cost the customer's in the end and how do you go about replacing your battery if its bad and is there phone protection plan? Reply

Alright, you seriously compared the devices Wi-Fi speed, that is too funny. Wi-Fi do not cover ground like both sprint and AT&T both gloat about. I say for all you iPhone lovers, test iPhone 3GS (16GB/32GB) vs. palm pre' using their own carriers data speeds, see who wins? I say this because you'll more than likely 85% of the time use your own carriers data network instead of Wi-Fi unless you're on college campus, airport, gov't building, something major, how about outside your home, walking in the park, at the beach, bus station, outside your child's school while waiting to pick them up, how about outside the movie theatre's trying to check that movie time again....using Wi-Fi is not the way to go, but if you really want to, head up to Baltimore and use sprint's, that right sprint's 4g called WiMAX....post your true results, everyone look for someone with an iPhone 3gs, and vice versa all iPhone 3gs look for someone with a palm pre', toss out the Wi-Fi and go head to head using your carriers data speeds head to head, I dare you at&t! Reply

Too funny, you're commenting on my typing? Come on now, let's get real. I did not know that my typing skills were being analyzed. Let me now apologize to all perfect commentators on this and all other sites, lol....But I really didn't think my all caps would be taken as shouting, perception I love and hate it. Reply

Archos released the first ARM Cortex A8 based product in the Archos 5, Archos 7 and the Archos 5G about 10 months ago. Still I am sure Archos has a faster web browwser, even considering that the Archos HSDPA or WiFi browser has 3x more pixels at 800x480 on a still very pocketable 2x larger screen at 4.8" in diameter. Archos is releasing the next generation in September, running Android, even thinner, with up to 500GB, and even better optimized. Reply

I have tmobile data plan and att data plan. I don't why people are so upset with aTT, but their data Plan is cheap and peforms it's worth and i mean data plan only not the stiff contract from iphone. Tmobile is just horrid and Verizon is just pure evil someone should knock them off their high horse. Sprint is promising base on this review.
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If you have an iTouch 2G to hand, could you possibly compare website loading speeds on it with the iPhone 3G (using WiFi of course). The reason is because the iTouch 2G clocks its ARM11 at 533MHz instead of 412MHz - a 29% clockspeed increase. It would be interesting to see how much difference that 29% translates to in real-world performance. Reply

Anand, I hope you'll look further into what specific SGX model is in the iPhone 3G S. Seeing the processor and RAM is identical between the new iPhone and the Palm Pre, it'll be interesting if the Pre has the GPU advantage with the SGX530 if Apple did use the SGX520.

As well, could you also do your speed tests between the iPhone OS 2.2.1 and iPhone OS 3.0 using the original iPhone 3G? It'd be interesting to see what type of speed-ups have been accomplished in software. As well, it'd be very interesting to see if there have been fps speed-ups just from iPhone OS 3.0 with the old MBX as John Cormack thinks a 2 times improvement could be possible if Apple would spend more effort on optimizing the OpenGL stack. Reply

it's funny that I got the same times with my iphone 3g too.
Camera launch time was exactly 4.6 secs. It's even funnier that I did the tests with the old 2.2.1 firmware.
With 0s 3.0 these are the results

you should also time more intensitive apps, that's where the new iphone 3gs will shine.

Apps like web or dialer are damn too fast to even measure, they have none load time, you just wait for the opening animation to finish and the app is ready.
Apps like settings, clock and calendar discriminating. Also I've seen game load times and 3gs is definetaly faster.

I might be wrong, but you didn't specifically mention the OS on the 3G. The only reason I mention this, is I've seen a noticable increase in page render speed on my Iphone original after going to 3.0. Reply

as anand stated, the increase in speed is only due in part to the increased clock. The cortex a8 is an entirely new processor that can handle two instructions per cycle instead of the single that the arm 11 did. Even if the old iphone were OC'd to 600mhz the 3g s with its more robust cortex a8 would easily outpace it. Reply

I assume that the browser and app tests here and on the Palm Pre review for the iPhone 3G are for the older OS. If so, would you mind listing both so we can see any performance changes between OS and WebKit/SquirrelFish optimizations?

My camera launch time with iphone 3g os 3.0 is 2.6 secs. It might be something with the phone and how full the photos folder is or how many apps you have I dont know. Can anybody confirm and do a test with this?

I launched the camera app 5 times and took the average, all times were consistent and were about 2.6 secs. Reply

OK, I think I've found the culprit. After the phone was locked for a long time (about 10 min), I've unlocked the phone and went directly to the camera app, the first run took 4.0 secs. Consecutive runs all ended up around 2.6 secs. Reply

I used the same restore image on both iPhones and attempted to launch from a clean restart so nothing was cached. I did notice variation between some runs, I'm guessing background tasks are clouding results. In the final review I will have much more strenuous launch tests that should eliminate these sorts of issues, I just wanted to get a general idea out there quickly of how fast this thing is.

Reduction in time to 1/2 from any reference point means that speed has increased by a factor of 2 (inverse of time). Increasing speed 100 percent from any reference point is another way of stating that speed has doubled (i.e. increased by a factor of 2).

This is a common mistake I see everywhere... The comparison is made backwards because he who makes the article forgets that when you are talking about time to compare speeds, the relationship is inverse, not direct.

That being said... I still need a phone with a real keyboard. I'd like to see how the next n97 and HTC touch pro2 do against all of these, specially in the OS and application response time department... not too interested in bandwidth measurements as I use the phone too little when it comes to browsing.
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Why is the first iPhone ignored in these speed comparisons? Millions of first-generation iPhone owners are contemplating the upgrade, and I have no idea how the first generation phone compares in speed to either the 3g or the 3gs. Reply

I can't understand why the Blackberry Storm isn't included in comparisons like this. There was a new update a couple of weeks ago, and, at least in terms of loading applications, the storm is just as fast as the 3G S, if not faster. I can say, for a fact, that the Storm is faster than the numbers listed for the 3G, Pre, and G1.

I'm not saying the Storm is better. The iPhone has a LOT of things going for it, but the Storm is a popular phone on one of the nations largest carriers, and it performs well enough (now, if not when it was released) to be included in comparisons such as this. Reply

The only reason I didn't include the Storm? I don't have one :) I was a blackberry user long before the iPhone, there's a special place in my heart for them - although I think I still do favor the older blackberries thanks to their larger keyboards. I loved typing on them.

You're kidding right?? I have a storm... You want a comparision? ok.. first off there is no WIFI, so no point in results there since storm 1 doesn't have wifi.

v4.7.0.148 (Platform 4.0.0.181) opening different progs.. (I run the appleberry theme since it's more responsive than the storm's default theme)
Web Browser... 6 sec
Dialer......... 2 sec
Google maps.... 2 sec
Camera......... 4 sec
to take a pic with max resolution. etc. with camera... no comparison... by the time it takes a pic, what ever i was taking one of is long GONE! it takes about 3-7 sec on a GOOD DAY.. lowering resolution, etc. makes this marginally better. for it to SAVE the pic, it takes about 8 sec.
Email.......... 0.8sec

Conclusion: the phone still locks up on heavy use of email/phone, or just turns off since it can't handle heavy use... this is a hardware problem on my phone since there are some other storms that do not experience this. the new OS is faster than the original, .75 however, this is NO iphone, so don't expect it to work consistently like one. :p Reply

I'd say the problem that is cropping up here for the Storm is inconsistency, then, because your times for opening those apps are longer than what I've experienced across the board, with the exception of Google Maps, which your phone seems to do well with.

I have been very happy with the camera on my phone. It runs circles around my wife's Flipshot, as far as responsiveness and image quality are concerned. I've had no problems with shutter delay on the highest settings (as with many cameras, the responsiveness is much better when you press half way to let the autofocus work), although video recording doesn't always stop recording as responsively as I'd like.

My web browser, and dialer launch within no more than 1 second, and the camera is ready to go within 1.5 to 2 seconds.

I should note that I am using the default theme.

I'm not trying to disclaim your numbers - I'm legitimately concerned about the fact that the Storm seems to display such a difference in application performance from phone to phone, as I personally know 2 people who aren't happy with their Storm.

And wi-fi being absent shouldn't exclude the storm. People have made such a big deal about this... Where was mms on the iPhone, or video, or flash for the camera (kudos to Apple for adding some of these, btw)? These things might not be important to you, but they are to me, much more so than wi-fi. Each of these phonse have their advantages and disadvantages, and for many, Wi-fi is no more vital than options missing on other phones.

Based on my personal experience, it is a shame that the Storm doesn't get a fair chance. (and to those who would quote sales numbers, they really have no place in a hardware/software performance comparison)

The iPhone 3GS uses an ARM Cortex A8 processor running at 600MHz, faster than its older versions. This processor brings a good speed in your routine works. For instance, in an experiment with new 3GS, web pages render 128% faster than old iPhones; the clock speed boost was 45% and over all performance of 3GS found mimics to the Palm Pre. The basic application load time found ranges in between the 14 to 72% faster than the other Phones.
Iphone application development Reply

However, the Storm is certainly lagging behind in sales. IIRC, the Storm sold around 500,000 units in the first month. The iPhone 3GS is estimated to sell around 500,000-750,000 units in the first weekend. Reply

Just for kicks, I did a comparison of some of the sites mentioned here on my n82 and ipod touch (running OS3.0). The Nokia takes around 4-6 times longer than the ipod to load these sites. These were all on wi-fi sitting right next to my base station.

The Nokia phones have a much slower processor and their build of webkit is way slower. So, there's no point really comparing the two. Reply

I was wondering the same thing. I'm sitting here launching the applications listed in the comparison. The dialer, email, web browser, and camera launch instantly with a button press. Google Maps took a little longer to launch, but it was as fast as the 3GS. Reply

China wholesalers from www.wholesalecheapshops.com buy iphones from USA and resell in China, some wholesale shops in China sell fake cell phones, but in cheap price. Many customers like shopping China store.Reply

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